


Bloom! Episode 7 - Hierarchy

by pashaimeru



Series: Bloom! [7]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Bad Ending, Corruption, Explicit Sexual Content, F/F, Magical Girls, Maids, Mind Control
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-01
Updated: 2019-12-01
Packaged: 2021-02-25 06:01:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21631294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pashaimeru/pseuds/pashaimeru
Summary: The Blooms face an opponent that can't be beat with raw power alone. Will they find the resolve to resist her, or will be they trapped in a lifetime of servitude?
Series: Bloom! [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1556194
Kudos: 18





	1. True Path

”What about this one?”

Sofia gave her older brother an incredulous look. “W-why would she even... who’d use something like this?”

Oliver furrowed his brow. “Hey. She likes to avoid waste, right? I thought it’d be kind of thoughtful. And see, it folds. It’d go right into her purse.”

“Absolutely NOT!” Grabbing the item from her brother’s hands, she put it back on the gift shop shelf. A reusable straw? Ecological or not, who in their right mind would carry such a thing around?

Oliver shrugged. “Well, you find something then.”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to do! I’m taking this seriously!”

Their mother’s birthday was coming up soon, and the siblings were out shopping for a present. As usual, Sofia was very particular about the present while Oliver seemed fine with just about anything. Being still in school meant they couldn’t afford much, but it was the thought that counted—and even Oliver agreed, not letting her younger sister take on the burden of finding a good gift all upon herself.

Right now, though, Sofia had more things to think about than just her mother. Even Oliver, as blockheaded as he usually was, could see that something had been worrying his younger sister for some time now. “Hey,” he said, stopping to look Sofia in the eyes. “Are you okay?”

Sofia blinked. “Y-yeah, why?”

Looking at her for a while, Oliver finally sighed, bringing his hand down to roughly ruffle his younger sister’s curly cinnamon hair. “Just tell me if there are any problems, alright?”

Strongly considering stomping on his toes, Sofia instead retreated to avoid further public spectacle. “Even if I had any problems, I wouldn’t tell you! Idiot!” she said, with flushed cheeks and a frown on her face as she tried to find a mirror to fix her hair. Not that she could ever prevent it from being all messy. The only time it ever looked neat was when she was transformed into Bloom Hope...

Oliver was already moving ahead. “How about this set of bath bombs...?”

“We don’t even have a bathtub!” Sofia retorted, but she was still thinking about something else.

 _“I have arranged a meeting with Princess Anatheia. It will be in two days’ time, in her realm. I would like all three of you to accompany me, if at all possible,”_ Edeltrude had said, just a few hours before. _“I do not trust her, but... we do need her.”_

Sofia’s thoughts kept returning to the faerie princess. She had been impossibly charming and pretty; more beautiful than any girl, real or fictional, than Sofia had ever seen. It had been nearly two weeks since their meeting, but the strange yearning in her heart had grown no weaker. She had to admit, she was eager to see her again—but also scared. She had tried to manipulate them before, and if Effie hadn’t been there, who knows what would’ve happened?

Had Anatheia seriously tried to win her over, or had she merely been toying with them? Either way, it had shown Sofia just how weak her heart could be. Fighting Lilin was one thing, but being so easily swayed by a few words from the cutest, most wonderful fairy princess there—

“This! How about this?!” Sofia said, flustered, pointing at a handbag in front of her.

Oliver scratched his cheek. “I’m pretty sure that’s not within our budget, Sofia. Really, are you okay? Why are you so red?”

A little embarrassed, Sofia shook her head. “Obviously! Um, oh! Isn’t there a new book out in that crime series she likes? Should we go to the bookstore instead?”

“...Really? And you didn’t think to mention this until an hour into shopping? Jeez.” Oliver gave a tired shrug, following his younger sister out of the gift store.

The siblings walked down the labyrinthine streets of the White Hollow, pausing only briefly to check out the display of a comic book shop. As they took a shortcut through an alleyway, though, Sofia felt an eerie but familiar presence that made her bristle. A Lilin’s magic: faint, but still there.

Oliver might not have been able to sense it, but he did notice Sofia’s reaction. “What is it now?”

“I’m going to... check out what’s there. Please wait here!” she said, turning the corner and running towards where she could feel the magic from. Edeltrude had warned the three not to fight anything alone, but if someone was in trouble, Sofia couldn’t just linger around and wait for her friends to get there to help!

And there, on courtyard between some old buildings was a shimmer in the air, almost like a portal of some sort. Not an immediate threat to anyone, but not something to ignore either. Whipping up her phone and texting her friends, Sofia swiftly returned to her brother’s side.

“Oliver... I’m sorry! Please go buy the book without me. There’s something I need to take care of!” she said, fidgeting and looking up at her big brother.

She was expecting a bonk on her head, followed by a flat-out refusal. Instead, she got a long stare and finally a shrug. “Fine, fine. I’ll go buy it and head straight home. Don’t be out too late.”

“Y-yeah. I won’t. Thanks!”

* * *

“There’s no mistaking it,” Edeltrude said, her reflection appearing off a nearby window. “It’s a gateway into a Lunaciasphere, left wide open. Only you three should be able to see and sense it, but anyone walking into it will be pulled through. At least it doesn’t seem like a lot of people come here...”

The three girls looked around. The courtyard was empty except for them, featuring just an old, rusty swing set and a few parked bikes. If the Lilin had wanted to draw in people, this would’ve been a terrible way of going about it. Unless, of course...

“It’s a trap, right?” Fleur said, crossing her arms. Unusually for her, she was wearing long trousers and a hoodie, her long black hair tucked under it. Though normally one to always take care of appearances, she had been home when she’d received the message from Sofia and hadn’t had time to make herself presentable. If someone was going to see her in public without makeup, it was best if she wouldn’t be recognised.

“It’s kind of obvious, isn’t it...?” Effie said as well, crossing her arms.

“Yes. Given that only you are able to sense it, I think it’s obviously designed to draw the three of you in. The Lilin who’s created this wants you there, no-one else,” the princess confirmed. “Don’t take the bait.”

“Then... what are we going to do? Wait here until it bops its head out and beat her up? Just walk away and let it be?” Sofia asked. “It could take ages! And what if she starts doing something horrible to force us to act? L-like kill people, or...”

“Hey, yeah! Sofia’s right!” Effie said, hitting her fist against her palm. “Besides, this presence feels weak. It can’t be a strong one. We know it’s a trap, so we can just jump right in and give it our all. Overwhelm her with force!”

Fleur nodded. “We’d be relying on the Lilin underestimating us. It might work. It probably doesn’t know much about us... but we also don’t know much about her. It’s risky.”

“It’s too risky!” Edeltrude protested. “Give me some time. Maybe after we’ve talked to Anatheia, I could...”

Sofia shook her head. “The Lilin is here now! We can’t let it be. It could hurt people! And it might not be too late to save the Lilin herself, either. If we wait...”

Effie nodded emphatically enough for her ponytail to bop up and down. “Yeah. We gotta do this now!”

“I’ll abstain from voting,” Fleur said, her voice calm. “So it will be two votes for, and one against.” She looked at Edeltrude.

The Princess sighed. “I-if that is your wish. But please remember, anything can happen there. The rules and laws of the world are not the same as ours. The Vexing Imp was weak and her Sphere undeveloped, but this one could be on another level entirely.”

“We’ll be careful,” Fleur said, smiling softly. “Well then, shall we go?”

The other two girls nodded. Transforming into magical girls in flashes of pink, blue and yellow, they stepped towards the gateway, steeling their hearts for what might await them.

* * *

Sofia stretched, yawned and opened her eyes, the first morning sun greeting her outside the window. As comfortable as her bed and her thick blankets were, it was time to get up.

As she stood up and looked around the room, though, there was a moment of disorientation. Everything looked unfamiliar. The wooden walls and floors, the houseplants on the windowsill, the oaken wardrobe and the well-equipped vanity table in front of the mirror—this didn’t really look like her room. Where was...?

As her gaze settled on the sleeping face of Effie, though, she felt more at ease. A sense of familiarity followed, the world settling back into its place. That’s right: this was their room. And as usual, it looked like Effie was going to sleep in unless she’d be there to wake her up.

“Effie,” Sofia said gently, shaking the orange-haired girl a bit. “It’s time to wake up.”

She groaned, sat up and rubbed her eyes, a confused and slightly frightened expression on her face... but a moment later, she looked up at Sofia and smiled. Still a bit sleepy, but much at ease. “I’m up, I’m up...”

Stripping out of her pyjamas, Sofia took the first shower, shampooing her long, pink hair and giving her body thorough scrubbing before stepping out to dry herself. Opening her underwear drawer, she produced a fresh pair of panties and a bra, putting them on in front of the mirror and smiling at her reflection. Not a single dark circle under her magenta eyes, a radiant smile on her pink lips. She was perfectly presentable as it was, but she took the moment to apply some mascara and a bit of perfume. Her mistress liked her looking—and smelling—the best she could.

“What should we make for dinner today?” she asked Effie as the two of them were getting dressed.

“Mm... you decide!” the younger girl said. “Maybe we could have fish for a change? We should ask Roselle what she thinks.”

Long white socks with black ribbons. A black and white button-up uniform, with a knee-length skirt and a separate apron. A headdress with a ribbon, black heels and simple pearl earrings. She did a little twirl, giggling at herself in the mirror before turning to appraise Effie. “Your collar is a bit off...” she said, frowning a bit. “Here, let me fix it.”

Staying obediently still until Sofia was finished with her adjustments, Effie checked herself out in the mirror as well and smiled. A perfect maid for a perfect mistress.

* * *

“Good morning, Sofia. Good morning, Effie.”

“Good morning, Roselle!” the two junior maids said in unison, curtseying at the smiling head maid.

As usual, the brunette woman gave the two girls a through appraisal. Checking their uniforms for creases, their fingernails for any dirt, their postures for any imperfections. Failing her inspection and being sent back to one’s room for a do-over was humiliating, but both of the girls understood her reasons why. For a maid, it wouldn’t do to be inattentive or to give a subpar performance in anything they did _._ As the head maid, it was Roselle’s pride on the line as well.

“Very good. You pass,” she said, giving Sofia a kiss on her cheek and eliciting a little giggle from her. “And you as well, Effie. Good job this morning.”

The younger girl blushed a bit, fiddling with her bright orange ponytail. “Ehehehe. Sofia helped...” she admitted, nonetheless pleased as Punch with the praise.

“Well done, Sofia,” Roselle said, smiling at her. Sofia smiled back.

Roselle was a young woman, some ten years older than the junior maids. Pale and beautiful, she was the very image of a proper maid. Shoulder-length brown hair, red lips, gentle but attentive dark eyes. Pretty and feminine but clad in the same maid uniform as the other two girls, never flaunting her beauty—never attempting to overshadow her mistress. She was firm where needed but gentle otherwise. Like an older sister, or almost a mother, for the junior maids under her command. She had taught Sofia and Effie everything they needed to know about being maids. They owed it all to her...

There was an odd discomfort in Sofia’s heart, the same _jamais vu_ that she’d felt after getting out of bed. How... how long had she and Effie worked here again? How had they come to be here, and where had they been before? Frowning a bit, she looked around the unfamiliar corridor, and—

“Sofia,” Roselle said, and the pink-haired maid snapped to attention. “It is your turn for the laundry today, and Effie’s turn to do the cooking. But she will need some help, still. Will you find the time to assist her?”

“Yes, Roselle,” Sofia said, curtseying again.

* * *

The day went on as usual. As large as the mansion was, three maids working full time around the clock was more than enough to keep it clean. Mopping and sweeping the floors, dusting the furniture, watering the plants; folding the laundry and helping Effie with the cooking. There was plenty to do, but following the rigid routine that Roselle had set for them left little room for boredom. It was the kind of work Sofia excelled at: peaceful, meditative and for someone else’s benefit. The maids were the pride of their mistress, and just thinking about receiving her praise made her heart flutter with excitement.

Though not much of a cook, Effie was eager to learn, and Sofia made for an excellent teacher. It had come as something of a surprise to see just how quickly Effie had taken to her duties as a maid. As tomboyish and hot-headed as she could be, she seemed to have another side to her entirely. Obedient, dutiful, deferential... Sofia liked the thought of making her mistress happy, but to Effie, merely doing as told seemed to be a reward in and of itself.

“Be careful, Effie. You’ll want to curl your fingers a bit as you’re chopping. Here, let me show...” Sofia said, the younger maid meekly stepping to the side and letting herself be taught.

“I’ll do it that way, then. Thank you, Sofia!”

Sofia smiled. “Please do your best!”

* * *

As good of a job as Sofia was doing through the day, the sense of abnormality kept returning through the day. Sometimes as a minor sense of unease, something as something more—when she’d stepped out of the house to check on the garden, she had stared at the lilac sky for a good full minute trying to figure out why it felt so _wrong_ before finally returning to her duties. And now, standing in the upstairs hallway and looking up at a portrait of her mistress, those strange worries gnawed at her once again...

“Sofia,” Roselle said, gently but firmly, grabbing her by her shoulders from behind. Sofia froze up. She hadn’t even heard the head maid approaching. “This is not how a maid should behave. You’ve kept spacing out through the day. Don’t think I haven’t noticed.”

A sense of guilt and shame washed over Sofia. Swallowing, she looked down. “I-I’m sorry, Roselle. I don’t know what’s...”

“Maybe you’re in the need of a vacation,” she said softly. “Or perhaps a punishment would help. What do you think, Sofia?”

Both sounded unthinkable. She gave a weak shake of her head. “P-please! I’ll do better! I must have simply slept poorly last night. Tomorrow, I’ll be fine tomorrow!”

Sofia could feel a kiss on the back of her head. “Very well. But before that, there’s still one more duty for the evening.”

One more duty...? Sofia tried to think. Serving an evening snack for the mistress? No, that was Roselle’s task alone, and besides, that should’ve already been done an hour ago. She wasn’t sure what the head maid was talking about, but didn’t want to embarrass herself by asking, either.

“Meet me in front of the mistress’s room in fifteen minutes. Bring Effie with you, would you?”

“Y-yes, of course.”

* * *

“Come in...” came the mistress’s voice, delicate and weak as always. Roselle opened the door and stepped in, the two junior maids following in after.

The mistress was sitting on her bed. Wearing a silky blue nightgown, a hair ribbon tied to her long azure hair with just a touch of makeup on her face, she looked the maids over with a mix of embarrassment and excitement. The sight made Sofia’s heart hurt a bit. Due to her fragile constitution, she seldom left her room; she was like a sheltered princess, beautiful but frail.

“Mistress Fleur,” Roselle said. “We are here for you. Please give us your orders. We’ll do anything you wish for...”

“My... orders,” Fleur repeated. There was a _moment_ of confusion, hesitation, even fear as Fleur’s eyes looked over the maids, seeking for support and finally meeting with Sofia’s own. The pink-haired maid’s heart skipped a beat. This wasn’t right, this was...

“Sofia,” she finally said, gently but firmly. “Step forward.”

“Yes, mistress...” she said. From the corner of her eye, she could see Roselle standing perfectly still and Effie fidgeting, just a bit. The feeling of unease wouldn’t go away.

The smile on her mistress’s face was strange: eager, almost feverishly so. “Unbutton your dress,” she commanded, with no trace of the previous hesitation left. “And take it off.”

Sofia could feel her face flushing. Her mistress’s commands were absolute; she couldn’t defy them. Roselle stood right behind her, her stare burning holes in her back. And this... wasn’t this one of her duties too? Wasn’t she supposed to do this, as a maid? With her cheeks flushed, she unbuttoned the top and quickly slipped out of it, now underwear-clad before Mistress Fleur’s yearning gaze.

“And now,” Fleur said, dreamily. “Come give your mistress a kiss.”

Taking a step forward, then another, her heart beating like a drum, Sofia leaned down towards her sitting mistress, forgetting even to breathe...

Blinking, Sofia felt tears in her eyes. Why was she—

“No!” she said, taking a step back. Fleur’s cheeks were red, her eyes wide with surprise. “F-Fleur! This isn’t you! W-what are we even...?”

“T-that’s Mistress Fleur to you!” Effie said from behind her, sounding more than a little angry. Sofia turned around and met the eyes of her fellow maid... no, her friend. “What are you doing, Sofia?!”

“What are _you_ doing?!” Sofia yelled back. “We aren’t maids! We... we...” she said, before meeting Roselle’s gaze. She was smiling, but the piercing glare she was giving her was chilly enough to freeze the air between them. “Y-you’re a Lilin. You must be, we’ve all been...!”

“Apologise immediately, Sofia,” she said, the head maid’s normally warm tone now anything but. “Or you will be punished.”

There was something Sofia needed to do in these circumstances. Something to yell, so she could transform. But... she saw her own reflection from the corner of her eyes. Pink hair, magenta eyes. Wasn’t she already transformed, then? But why did she feel so weak?

“Get on your knees,” Roselle said. Sofia’s legs felt weak and wobbly. The sheer _pressure_ of Roselle’s orders was enough to stop her from moving. That was the hierarchy of things, after all. A junior maid was not meant to disobey the head maid. To do so would be unthinkable.

Sofia shook her head, still managing to stand. “N-no!” she said, looking at Effie with pleading eyes. “Effie! R-remember Dot! If we lose here, you’re never going to see your big sister again!”

The orange-haired maid’s face grew pale. “I...”

“Silence!” the head maid said, fury and poison in her tone. Sofia flinched, her throat feeling tight. A part of her wanted to apologise, to beg for mercy, to do anything she could to fix this mess she’d caused... but she couldn’t do that. She couldn’t fail her friends.

“Fleur, please! You don’t want this either! Y-you’re strong, not some weak butterfly! I don’t want to see you like this! I want the normal you!”

“Mistress Fleur. This is all on me. Please accept my humblest apologies,” Roselle said, curtseying deeply at Fleur. “It appears my authority is being ignored. Please order your maid to obey, and all shall be well again.”

Fleur looked between the head maid and Sofia, her eyes wide with confusion and hesitation. “I...” she said, closing her eyes for a bit, drawing a deep breath as if to clear her head.

Until finally, she stood up. “Roselle, stand down,” she said. “I... you have been deceiving me. Deceiving us.”

There was a strange silence in the room. The look in the head maid’s gaze was anything but gentle, now. Twisted and hateful, venom in her gaze.

“W-what’s going on?” Effie asked, backing up against the wall, confused.

“That’s right...” Fleur said, rubbing her temples. “Lilin. You’re a... Lilin. What did you do to us?”

Roselle changed before their very eyes. Her green eyes were now like two black pits, her skin alabaster white, the teeth behind her blood-red lips jagged and sharp, her red nails like daggers. “I am the Perfidious Handmaiden. And all of your souls belong to me. To me!”

“Kneel,” Fleur commanded, looking far from the frail maiden she had been just moments before. “Kneel!”

Sofia expected the Handmaiden to lunge towards Fleur, to try to shred her to ribbons with her nails—but as much as it looked like she wanted it, she couldn’t deny her orders. With hatred and frustration, she did as ordered, her knees trembling for a bit before she submitted.

“Sofia, you know what to do,” Fleur said.

And Sofia did. Taking a deep breath, looking the Lilin in the eyes, she spoke out the words. “Bloom Cure!”

* * *

“As I said, a Lilin makes her own world with its own rules and laws. Hers seemed to have a rigid hierarchy for it. A maid must always obey her mistress... that sort of a thing,” Edeltrude said, nodding sagely with her arms folded in front of her. “You were lucky. You were able to exploit the rules and defeat her without a fight.”

“But why would she make a world where the rules are stacked against her?” Effie asked, lying on Sofia’s bed. “That’s just dumb. Why didn’t she make _herself_ the mistress? Or make it so that the mistress had to obey the head maid?”

“It’s not a conscious decision. What a Lilin is able to do, what their Lunaciasphere is like, how things work in it—it all reacts to the desires in their heart, arranges itself in a way that makes sense to them instinctively.”

“I guess I get it...” Sofia said, glancing towards Fleur. She had been awfully quiet. Was she angry? Embarrassed? Something else? She was never one to talk about her feelings much. Some part of Sofia almost wanted to tease her about how she had been acting as the ‘mistress’ of the place, but now didn’t seem like the right for that. Maybe in the future. “Well, either way! I told you we’d be fine! We saved the Lilin, too!”

Indeed, it had seemed like the trio had been the Perfidious Handmaiden’s first ever victims. Having not yet had the opportunity to taint her heart for good, she had been successfully purified—and left unconscious in the courtyard, an ambulance anonymously called for the poor woman.

“Like I said, that was luck! Luck!” Edeltrude said, fuming. “Things could’ve easily turned out completely different! I hope that from now on you’ll think twice about jumping into traps like that!”

* * *

“My, what was that?” asked the green-haired girl. “She went straight for them as if she knew about them. Was that your idea?”

Edelynn gave Ione only the smallest of glances before returning her attention to her work. She furrowed her brows a bit, looking at today’s subject. She hadn’t yet stopped struggling; perhaps she should’ve given her some sedatives, but it might have risked affecting the data. “I pointed her towards them, yes,” she said absent-mindedly. “The result was as expected.”

Ione tilted her head, looking over the laboratory equipment with curiosity. The woman on the operating table had two glass containers next to her, with tubes attached to her veins. A black ichor of some sort was being pumped into her, while her bright red blood was being suctioned out. A gag prevented her from screaming overly much. “You and your experiments, Lyn,” she said, shaking her head gently. “That was it, right? An experiment?”

Finally turning towards the green-haired girl, Edelynn offered her a slight frown. “You exposed yourself. Why?”

“You mean in the mountains?” Ione asked. “I had to help a woman in need. That’s what we do, right?”

Edelynn stared at her blankly.

“Come on, now. Trudi would’ve found out eventually, anyway. And... I think this benefits us. Having doubts about our fate surely must’ve kept her up at night, but knowing for certain what it meant to sacrifice us?” Ione laughed softly. “Poor Trudi. I’ll kiss and soothe all of her worries away when I find her...”

“Don’t forget,” Edelynn said, her voice harsh. “She belongs to the Empress. Not to us.”

Bringing a finger up to her green lips, Ione smiled. “Yes, but... she would not mind us having a little fun with our very best friend first, I’m sure.”


	2. Another Fate

“Is there purpose to your visits, I wonder?” The tiny girl in the white dress asks. “Mere curiosity?”

She taps the measuring rod in her hand against the other, her eyes closed. “It cannot be anything else, can it?” she asks in her soft voice. “For nothing you learn here will be of any help to you. All that you learn here will slip from your grasp like fine sand. If you think to use it to learn about her whereabouts or their weaknesses, well...”

A smile. “And should you try... well, I do not much care. But my elder sister might, and she is the one with the scissors.”

She shakes her head in response. “You know it was not. All I do is measure.”

Her fingers seek the thread. “Of course. For today... how about this? The maiden in pink has found her resolve, but she cannot win alone. The one who holds the key is someone else. And if she will not use it...”

“Well, take a look.”

* * *

“Fleur, please! You don’t want this either! Y-you’re strong, not some weak butterfly! I don’t want to see you like this! I want the normal you!”

“Mistress Fleur. This is all on me. Please accept my humblest apologies,” Roselle said, curtseying deeply at Fleur. “It appears my authority is being ignored. Please order your maid to obey, and all shall be well again.”

Fleur looked between the head maid and Sofia, her eyes wide with confusion and hesitation. “I...” she said, closing her eyes for a bit, drawing a deep breath as if to clear her head.

There was a strange look of sadness in her eyes as she opened them. She looked frailer than ever. “Sofia, do as you’re told,” she said, her voice hollow. “You must obey Miss Roselle.”

The pink-haired girl’s heart sank. She opened her mouth to protest, but just then, the head maid snapped her fingers. A puddle of darkness appeared below Sofia’s feet, inky arms and tendrils reaching out to grab her by her ankles, creeping up her thighs. “Eek! F-Fleur, don’t let her do this, I...!”

Sofia’s struggles lasted only for a moment before she was pulled under, into that murky blackness. Both Effie and Fleur stared eyes wide open at the spot where Sofia had stood just seconds before, nothing left behind but an ordinary floor.

“Don’t worry,” Roselle said, moving over to hug Fleur lightly and give her a light kiss on the top of her head. “Everything will return to normal soon. I promise. The next time you see her, she’ll as loving and obedient as you’ve always wanted her to be.”

Shivering and hugging a pillow, Fleur couldn’t do anything but nod. Had she really done the right thing just now...?

* * *

“I-I don’t understand,” Effie said. “Why did Sofia do that? And what are you going to do to her?”

The Handmaiden squeezed her little hand a bit, leading her back to her room. The two beds were perfectly made, with Sofia’s remaining empty. Sitting Effie on her own bed, the Handmaiden sat down next to her, untying the young maid’s ponytail and letting her hair down. Effie didn’t resist, but the Lilin could sense the growing rebellion in her heart. Left alone, the enchantment would come undone, as it had for Sofia. And that would be an unacceptable mess.

“She talked about Dot,” Effie continued, looking up at the head maid with a mild frown. “My sister. Where is my...?”

“Shh.” The Handmaiden put a finger to the young girl’s lips, before sliding it down to her chin, tilting her head up a bit while her other hand gently stroked her bright orange hair. “It’s alright. Let’s put such things behind us.”

“Behind? But—” Effie said, before growing quiet. Blinking in confusion, she found herself staring at the head maid’s inky black eyes. “W-what’s...”

The same darkness that had captured Sofia was now wrapping itself around the young maid’s body, enveloping it tightly, wrapping her arms to her sides and her legs to each other. She didn’t even consciously realise what was going on, just confusion—and fear—in her bright golden eyes.

“You like Sofia, don’t you? She’s been like a big sister to you. Helping you dress, helping you make food. How about I assign you both to the gardening duty tomorrow? You can make all the flowers pretty together, just the two of you,” the Handmaiden said sweetly, her eyes still fixed on Effie’s own.

“But I... I already...” Effie mumbled.

Sliding a hand up her cheek to her forehead, the Handmaiden pressed a nail firmly—painfully—against her skin. “I won’t accept any backtalk. I won’t accept disobedience. Let this be a punishment for you,” she said softly. Effie’s eyes went wide with fear, and she tried, perhaps, to say something in her defence, but it was too late. The black ichor that had been binding her body was up to her mouth now, muffling her words. The Handmaiden kept pressing her finger against her forehead—and her nail extended outwards, piercing the young girl’s head.

Effie struggled, for what good it did. Letting out muffled cries, she tried to break free of the shadows binding her. The Handmaiden didn’t mind; instead, she kept scraping. Methodically and precisely erasing any trace of Dot from the young girl’s memories. All their moments together, even the memory of her name, slowly scrubbed clean.

Over the next half an hour, Effie’s struggles weakened. Her bright golden eyes, wet with tears, grew dimmer with every passing minute. Only finally, fully satisfied with the results, did the Handmaiden pull her finger back, the shadows binding the girl dissipating. There were no physical traces of anything she’d done, but Effie slumped down on the bed like a puppet with its strings cut.

“You’ll feel better in the morning, I promise,” the Lilin said, reaching to kiss her on the cheek. “Time will heal all damage. And once you get to meet the new Sofia, I’m sure there’ll be no more worries left in your heart.”

* * *

“What a waste. What a terrible waste,” the Handmaiden said to the tied-up girl in the darkness. Still in her maid uniform, Sofia had been sat down on a chair and restrained with silk ties. Her wrists were bound together behind the back rest of the chair, her legs slightly spread with her ankles tied to the chair’s legs. Her mouth had been gagged; she didn’t have a blindfold on, but that hardly mattered. There was nothing to look at except the chair on which she was sitting on, featureless darkness surrounding in every direction. Even the Lilin’s voice was disembodied, seemingly coming from all directions at once.

“Mmmph! Mmfg...” Sofia tried, struggling with all her might, trying to at least knock the chair she had been seated on to its side. But it wouldn’t budge; it was as if its legs had been superglued to the dark floor under her, if it indeed could even be called a floor.

“Had you just been nice and obedient, I could have fed on you for a good, long time. Slowly sipping at your soul and the shard within you until there’d be nothing left of you.”

“Mff!”

“It is not as cruel as you might think. You would have been happy. Content. Never having a single real worry in your heart. Even a single decade of joy is much more than most people get, after all.”

Was there nothing to be done? Brute strength alone wouldn’t solve this. Sofia didn’t have her powers as a magical girl, and the Lilin had her completely at her mercy. Maybe—maybe her words had gotten through to Fleur and Effie, in the end. Maybe they were already concocting a plan to save her. That seemed to be her only hope.

“Your friends,” the Handmaiden continued in her gentle tone. “Were easier to control. Poor Effie has always had a compliant nature, deep within. It brings her joy to serve. She wants to be ordered by her betters, punished for her mistakes. She enjoys having control taken away from her. What a good girl she is...”

Sofia swallowed. Effie could be hot-headed and brash, but she certainly had a meeker side to her that she showed to those close to her. Was all the spunk she had just an act? That couldn’t be right.

“And Fleur, lovely Fleur... she is quite comfortable being in charge. Having the reins. When she says something and people listen, it brings her heart joy. She’ll need just a bit of grooming to bring that side forth from behind all her doubts and uncertainty.”

“Mmmgh...”

“You were different, though. More concerned for them than for yourself. You could easily sense something was wrong, that they were being manipulated. You must care about them quite deeply.” The Lilin laughed softly. “And so you broke through my illusion. And there’s no putting the genie back into the bottle. You’ll risk ruining everything now. Risk ruining this perfect world I’ve made...”

Something appeared out of the darkness. A knife made out of shadows, razor-sharp, difficult to make out amidst the blackness that surrounded her. It pressed its tip against Sofia’s chest, piercing cleanly through her maid uniform. A single thrust and it’d be over in an instant. A chill travelled down the pink-haired girl’s spine, fear of death making her heart race all the faster.

“But no,” said the Maidservant, the knife vanishing. “I cannot merely dispose of you. Effie needs an elder sister to look up to. And Fleur, poor Fleur, will not be content to live without you. It’s you who she wants to submit to her, above all. Effie simply won’t be enough by herself.”

A single light appeared in darkness, a wisp glowing a malignant red. As Sofia’s eyes settled upon it, she realised she could no longer look away. There was a little buzz in her head, a disorienting white noise. “Mm... mmmh!”

“Instead, I’ll just have to share my mistress’s gift with you. My _true_ mistress’s, that is. It’ll mean having another mouth to feed, but there are advantages to having a partner. We’ll share this feast between the two of us. This, and many more...”

The Lilin’s black shadows returned, wrapping around Sofia’s legs and creeping up her body, effortlessly sliding under her maid uniform. Their cold touch on her bare skin made her shiver and struggle all the harder, but there was nothing she could do. The red orb of light floated closer and closer still, growing larger in the girl’s vision.

“MMMMFG!” Sofia’s eyes went wide as the darkness flooded into her underwear, pushing themselves all the way into her slit. Slowly, softly, they begun to stroke at her most sensitive place, heedless of the girl’s protests or the tears in her eyes. And even as she squirmed and struggled, the evil red light slowly eroded away at the shard within her, smothering out the light and painting it a bloody red.

“Soon, you’ll be like me. A perfect maidservant for a perfect mistress. Granting these humans their deepest desires, while slowly feeding on their very souls. A true, loyal servant of Mistress Edelynn..."

Dark thoughts flooded into Sofia’s heart, desires and hungers that weren’t her own. The Perfidious Handmaiden was warping her very soul, dark corruption seeping in with every moment she spent looking into that cursed light. She only lasted for a few more minutes, the Lilin’s shadows finally bringing her to a shuddering climax—opening the floodgates for the red glow that wasted no time with snuffing out the light within her.

* * *

“I have an announcement to make,” Roselle said after the morning inspection was over. Sofia and Effie were both standing with their backs straight, the usual smile on their faces. “As of this morning, Sofia has been promoted to the position of a senior maid. From now on, please take her orders seriously and grant her the appropriate respect, Effie.”

Effie looked up at the pink-haired maid and smiled. Sofia smiled back. There was just a moment of discomfort in Effie’s heart. Had she always been so pale? Had her eyes always been so... black? But Sofia leaned in and kissed her on the forehead, and all was well again.

“Congratulations, Sofia!” she said, hugging her tightly.

“Thank you, Effie. Let’s keep doing our best for mistress as usual,” she said, her tone so loving and gentle that it made Effie’s heart flutter. She really was like a sister to her...

* * *

“Are you alright, mistress?” Sofia asked.

Fleur looked into the maid’s dark eyes, reflected through the mirror in front of which she was sitting on. Sofia was brushing her long azure hair, slowly and rhythmically, a smile on her pink lips. It was comforting, but the anxiety in her chest just wouldn’t go away. Was she supposed to be doing something, or remember something? “I-I’m fine,” she said, and tried to smile. “It’s just that... didn’t something weird happen last evening?”

“You don’t need to worry about that. Miss Roselle already took care of it. There’s nothing to be concerned about anymore,” she said, before putting down the hairbrush. “All done. Is there anything more you’d like me to do, Mistress Fleur?”

“I would like...” She paused. Those thoughts flooded into her head again. Of Sofia on her knees before her, kissing her toes, loving her, worshipping her. Of Sofia tied up on her bed with a pleading but eager look. Of her crying, just a bit, begging for mercy which Fleur would magnanimously grant her.

They scared her a bit, but also excited her. And as she stood up and turned around, looking into her maid’s submissive gaze, any hesitation she had seemed to vanish. “Undress for me, Sofia,” she said. “And get on your knees.”

* * *

She had been a little shy, still. Uncertain and awkward, embarrassed to ask for some of the things she’d truly wanted. But that was fine. There’d be plenty of time to teach her. Give it a few weeks, and she’d be much more confident and domineering... and Sofia would be happy to oblige. Ready to accept any pain or pleasure her mistress would deem her worthy of receiving.

Now though, she was merely lying in bed with her, softly stroking her hand and looking into her loving gaze.

“You should go to sleep, mistress,” she said softly. “Don’t worry. I’ll stay with you until the morning.”

“Mmm...” Fleur said, nodding meekly and closing her eyes. Happier and more satisfied than she’d ever been in her life.

That night, Sofia supped on just a little bit of her life. So little she wouldn’t even notice it missing. There was no need to be wasteful, after all. Between her and Effie, there’d be enough life to feed both of the Lilin for a good decade, if not more.

And then it would be time to move for the next prey.


End file.
